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Thanks to Crunchy Domestic Goddess for recommending Botanical PaperWorks' plantable invitations in a recent post entitled How to Throw and Eco-Friendly Party. I'm getting ready to throw a 6th birthday party this month for my daughter and I liked her suggestion for party favors (always a challenge!). Here's a clip and click to read the entire article:
Yesterday, I posted images of wildflowers from the Rockies, and today I wanted to provide some information about the flowers. Here are signs from the Johnston Canyon trail that give some information about the flowers. Click on the picture for a larger, readable image.
I'm back from my trip to the Rockies and wanted to share these photos of the most beautiful wildflowers:
How lucky are we all to be able to see this natural bounty!
We're in Drumheller now, touring the dinosaur museums, hiking and hanging out with the cousins. Eleven kids to eight adults. It's busy and fun.
Hello from Banff! I'm spending a few days there with my family this week and we're having a great time. So far, we've seen a variety of wildlife including black bear, elk and these deer:
Yes, the photo is quite blurry, but those creatures run FAST!
The wildflowers here are incredible and I'll be posting my photos when I get back, early next week. On the gondola ride in Lake Louise, we saw every color imaginable - pink, red, purple, yellow, white. As a lover of wildflowers, this is a huge treat to feast my eyes on all of this beauty.
Today, we're off to the Upper Hot Springs in Banff, to the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel to check out the magnificent architecture, maybe take another gondola ride and walk around Banff township for some shopping. Have a great day!
I made it! Here's the proof - one Bride with Pink and Purple Polka Dots for my daughter's fourth birthday party.
Also on the menu, this (freshly picked from Boonstra Farms):
and this:
Yum. Summer is the best time for fresh produce, that goes without saying.
Also fresh and yummy are the new Yummy Cards. Plant one and grow herbs, then make the recipe on the back of the card. Tasty!
We've had a great week in the Reimer-Epp household, starting with the launch of the new plantable paper products early this week. It's a complete family celebration when a new product launches since my husband and two girls hear every step of each product's development. They all cheer when the product finally goes live! Thanks to Kal for posting about the products on Monday and welcome visitors from her blog. Kal designs wonderful stationery, eh!
From Monday, Mavis is the lucky winner of the new 09 Plantable Greeting Card Set. Congratulations Mavis! Could you please email me your address so that I can send it out to you?
Here's what I was up to this week, with five days at a cottage on Lake Winnipeg. After tucking the kids into bed, I liked to steal down to the lake to catch the sunset:
A family tradition is to make s'mores. Here I am holding the supplies, getting ready to assemble the gooey treats (John is in charge of marshmallow roasting, I look after assembly and distribution!).
The resulting treat is yummy and messy:
Today, I'm packing for the next part of our holiday - a trip to Banff and Drumheller to see the dinosaur bones! But before that, I need to whip up one of these:
This is the birthday cake that my girls request each year. Today, I've been tasked with making "A Bride" with pink and purple polka dots. In between doing laundry and packing. No problem!
My postings will be light next week, due to the family car trip. Botanical PaperWorks is open, business as usual and in the capable hands of Customer Care Manager Toni, Marketing Manager Petra and Operations Manager Stephanie. Don't hesitate to give them a call! Until later, enjoy the last weeks of August!
I was reflecting today on how anyone, anywhere can make art. Years ago, my Mom and I taught a class in papermaking. It was at a lake-site retreat, with the beauty of nature all around us. We covered the basics of papermaking - making pulp, setting up a papermaking station, pulling sheets, couching on the pad, pressing and drying.
And then it was time to get creative.
We put out the suggestion that the students could now take inspiration from their surroundings and incorporate leaves, grasses and flowers of their liking. My husband John had been lurking on the fringes of the group, but at that point, I invited him to come join us. He agreed and set to work on his own project. I got busy helping other students with their work. Some were embedding flower petals, plucked fresh off their stems. Others were laminating green leaves between two newly-pulled sheets. Still others were layering colored sheets of paper, one on top of another.
After some time, I wandered over to John's station to see what he was up to. To my surprise and delight, he was creating something really special. One three sheets of cotton paper, he had placed whole roses, covered them with a second sheet of cotton paper, and then carefully and selectively pulled away some of the paper to reveal the treasure underneath. It was the coolest sculptural piece!
That moment stands out in my mind, because it demonstrated so clearly what can happen when you park your artistic inhibitions, rules and "musts" at the door and just get into a project.
John didn't have an artistic background, but he had a moment of inspiration and went for it. When the pieces dried, he had a fantastic piece of art, which to this day, hangs framed in his office, a testiment to how anyone can create art.
What are you doing today? Go make some art!
Thanks to Wedding Fanatic for recommending Botanical PaperWorks and our plantable Garden Greetings™ seed paper. Here's an excerpt from the post and a link to the Butterfly in Flight plantable seed favor shown below.
Check this out - Eventline, a resource for event planners worldwide, featured our plantable Yummy Cards last week. Thanks for the mention!
